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VIVA Says a Final Goodbye to the Breathe Project

This press release was recently sent out by the Committee:

One of the finalists in the Breathe Urban Village Anchor Project, The Viva! Sustainable Urban Village was last week told by CERA/CCDU that the Breathe Urban Village idea is no longer being pursued. It has been replaced with a residential precinct concept.

As a result the Viva Project is withdrawing intentions to create a sustainable urban village within the areas controlled by CERA in Christchurch City.

This is an economic decision as the price CERA is expecting for land is not financially viable for a community focused village concept as promoted in the Breathe Competition that they sponsored.

How sad – what was the purpose of the competition?

It turns out that the 58 New Zealand and International entries had no chance of adhering to the competition requirements and developing a community focused village that worked financially. No chance at all!

CERA, you have wasted our time and made a fool of Christchurch on the international stage.

In a recent email received from CERA, following an inquiry into purchasing land for residential development, land prices of $1500m2 up to $5000 & 7000m2 for some high value parcels were quoted. Oh really? Not for residential development in our city. Where are the developers that will take that on, and if they do what price will the housing need to be?

Look how Victoria St has gone ahead in an interesting an innovative way, without constraints that CERA has imposed on the central city.

It is difficult to see how the target of 20,000 people living in the central City will be achieved while CERA holds fast to obtaining the prices it paid for more expensive commercially valued land and expecting residential developments to be viable. And all this on earthquake damaged land.

The Viva! Project has exciting options outside of land controlled by CERA and looks forward to working with Christchurch people and the CCC in creating a sustainable urban village that will be a flag ship for what is possible in city developments.

Well done Jane and our great committee, You are doing a great job
You may remember I said all along it wouldn’t work with Cera , and I wouldn’t be interested with the pressures they put on us.
I feel it’s good to be rid of them and we make a new start.
Merry Christmas and All have a great 2016
Aroha, Fm, Mike.

Well done Jane and our great committee, You are doing a great job
You may remember I said all along it wouldn’t work with Cera , and I wouldn’t be interested with the pressures they put on us.
I feel it’s good to be rid of them and we make a new start.
Merry Christmas and All have a great 2016
Aroha, Fm, Mike.

Sadly, CERA encapsulates all that is wrong in New Zealand, no vision or courageous commitment to making this the country it should be in this 21st century. It is the people, the people who will effect changes, whilst taxpayer funded old world institutions, servants of us the taxpayers, try to hold onto their comfortable conventional “nests” burying their heads to the wealth of opportunities available to improve all of our peoples’ and our country’s future, giving some truth to the tired and embarrassing PR claims of a “clean green and caring, innovative country – the initiator of social welfare policies and number eight wire mentalities” That was a hundred years ago! Time to get off our forbears’ laurels and commit to a fully sustainable new world for those to come.
True leadership arises from examples such as ViVa!

Sadly, CERA encapsulates all that is wrong in New Zealand, no vision or courageous commitment to making this the country it should be in this 21st century. It is the people, the people who will effect changes, whilst taxpayer funded old world institutions, servants of us the taxpayers, try to hold onto their comfortable conventional “nests” burying their heads to the wealth of opportunities available to improve all of our peoples’ and our country’s future, giving some truth to the tired and embarrassing PR claims of a “clean green and caring, innovative country – the initiator of social welfare policies and number eight wire mentalities” That was a hundred years ago! Time to get off our forbears’ laurels and commit to a fully sustainable new world for those to come.
True leadership arises from examples such as ViVa!